The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Monday in the Eleventh Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 17 June 2024 1 Kings 21:1-16 <*((((><< + >><))))*> Matthew 5:38-42
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD in Infanta, Quezon, April 2020.
Your words today, O God are so agitating, "nakaka-init po ng ulo": it is an old story we have all memorized but every time we hear it, we are so moved in anger because it continues to happen in our own time, especially the truth that we never run out of scoundrels, of corrupt and evil people willing to sell their souls, to lie and malign others, even kill for money and wealth.
This is what Jezebel wrote in the letters: “Proclaim a fast and set Naboth at the head of the people. Next, get two scoundrels to face him and accuse him of having cursed God and king. Then take himmout and stone him to death.” His fellow citizens – the elders and the nobles who dwelt in his city – dis as Jezebel had ordered them in writing, through the letters she had sent them… On hearing that Naboth was dead, Ahab started off on his way down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.
1 Kings 21:9-11, 16
Forgive us, merciful Father in conniving with the modern Jezebels and scoundrels with our nasty talks and comments against others especially in social media; we may not be committing sin at the same scale as that of Jezebel and her cohorts but still, we continue this cycle of evil and violence in what we consider at small talks that are true after all... Oh God, forgive us in taking away the honor and dignity of so many people with our careless comments and even likes in social media posts.
Teach us in Jesus Christ your Son, Father, to go the extra mile in fighting this vicious circle of evil; give us the courage in Jesus to turn the other cheek by firmly standing on our ground at His Cross in resisting violence and revenge, in showing others that love always prevails, the love is the most potent force in the universe not greed nor hatred, that only love conquers all. Amen.
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD in Infanta, Quezon, April 2020.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B, 16 June 2024 Ezekiel 17:22-24 ><}}}}*> 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 ><}}}}*> Mark 4:26-34
Photo by author, Camp John Hay, Baguio City, 12 July 2023.
While preparing this homily, I cannot resist thinking of this poem by Joyce Kilmer because of its similarities with the first reading from the Book of Ezekiel and partly with the parables of Jesus in the gospel.
Kilmer tells us in his poem that trees are God’s presence among us, a sign of His own majesty, a reminder of life’s mysteries, something many of us seem to have learned only recently after the scorching heat of last summer when everyone was posting on Facebook the need to plant trees!
I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree.
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, April 2020 in Infanta, Quezon.
In the first reading, the Prophet Ezekiel picturesquely imagined how God would plant a great Lebanon cedar on a mountain as a sign of His divine intervention for our salvation that was eventually fulfilled in Jesus Christ’s coming.
Ezekiel lived during the Babylonian exile, the lowest point in life of Israelites when they did not have a country, nor a temple, not even a future. They felt abandoned, punished by God due to their sins; hence, Ezekiel was sent to give them hope. Through this beautiful allegory of the future Israel, Ezekiel tells his countrymen including us today how God would eventually intervene in a very personal manner to fulfill His promise of salvation.
Thus says the Lord God: I, too, will take from the crest of the cedar, from its topmost branches tear off a tender shoot, and plant it on a high and lofty mountain. It shall put forth branches and bear fruit, and become a majestic cedar. Birds of every kind shall dwell beneath it, every winged thing in the shade of its boughs. And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the Lord, bring low the high tree, lift high the lowly tree, wither up the green tree, and make the withered tree bloom. As I, the Lord, have spoken, so will I do.
Ezekiel 17:22-24
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, April 2020 in Infanta, Quezon.
That beautiful imagery of the cedar tree planted in Israel reminds us that in whatever state of life we may be – whether we are like a tall or a lowly tree, a green or withered tree – it is always God who has the final say in life because He is the very reason for our existence.
Jesus declared to us in one of the Sundays of Easter, “I am the true vine and you are the branches…without me you cannot do anything” to show that more than a giver of life, He is life Himself because He is the tree planted firmly by God in our midst.
Incidentally, the word “tree” which is treowe in Old English is the root of the word true which connotes something firmly rooted, steadfast and faithful. From the same word treowe came trust because the roots of a tree signify relationships or interconnectedness. That is why the Anglo-Saxons have always traced their ancestors and family by using the diagram of a tree from which came our concept of “family tree” today.
How lovely to imagine that tree planted by God in our midst is Jesus Christ, “the Way, the Truth and the Life”, the One we must trust always!
Hence, Mark invites us today to listen more attentively to the Lord’s teachings, asking us to not just sit beside or around Him but try to “get inside” Him by taking into our hearts His words like Mary His Mother as we have reflected last Sunday.
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, April 2020 in Infanta, Quezon.
Again, Mark surprises us in his story of Jesus teaching the people about seeds and plants, and ordinary activities like sowing we take for granted but so rich in meanings. That is what a parable is – a simple story with deep meanings about life.
Our life itself is a parable wherein we find the most profound realizations in the most ordinary things and events in our lives. And that is where Jesus Christ comes too often. He is in fact the kingdom of God He spoke so often in His teachings and parables.
Jesus said to the crowds: “This is how it is with the kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and through it all the seed would sprout and grow he knows not how (Mk.4:26-27).”
Mark 4:26-27
This parable of the seed growing by itself tells us of that reality of God living among us, right with us in Jesus Christ. The seed is His word germinating in us if we cultivate it daily in prayer and good works. Just like the fecundity of the tiny seed planted in the field, God grows in us beyond all our hopes and expectations because He is never absent nor distant from us.
Photo by Ms. April Oliveros on Mt. Pulag, 2023.
Look back in your life this past week or past month, examine how many times you were blessed, of how you were pulled out and saved from a dire situation in the nick of time. Surely you can offer a lot of rational explanations but, when you come to think of it, there’s always an “Invisible Hand” saving you, guiding you.
That’s the point of the parable of the seed planted without the farmer knowing how it grows: God works best in our lives in silence.
This is the reason why St. Paul tells us to “walk in faith, not by sight” (2Cor.5:7): our life is a journey of faith wherein we cannot see everything clearly, cannot appreciate right away the extent of how God works His miracles in us daily.
Yesterday we celebrated the 40th day of my mom’s passing then tomorrow, June 17, is her 85th birthday which is also the 24th death of my dad. I told my sisters and brother that maybe that is the reason why dad died on mom’s birthday 24 years ago: so that it would not be difficult for us to visit their graves on June 17. Isang lakad at punta na lang para matipid!
But kidding aside, though it is so difficult and painful to be ulilang lubos (orphaned), I still feel so positive more than a month after my mother’s death because in those 24 years when my father died, God never abandoned us. With mom’s passing, I’m sure God will never forsake us too.
When I look back at how many times God has blessed us in the past, I also see that soon in the future, if we remain faithful to Him, Christ shall unfold in us and around us in ways we never imagined.
Photo by Ms. Analyn Dela Torre, March 2024.
Time flies so fast indeed these days; we are almost done with the first half of the year. In a short while we shall be hearing Jose Mari Chan singing again “Christmas In Our Hearts” as the Christmas countdown begins even before September first.
And that’s what I have noticed these past 20 years: with all the comforts in life, we have become impatient that we rush everything, even Christmas and holidays. We live in a world of instants that we cannot wait anymore like the farmer in the parable of Jesus. Or the Prophet Ezekiel imagining God coming soon.
We don’t have to discard the modern amenities we have in life today for most of these are gifts from God Himself. However, we must remember these are not everything, that many times in life despite all our careful planning, things still do not turn out as we expect.
There is only one thing we can be sure of, Jesus Christ silently in our midst. Look at any tree around you, the many years it had weathered all kinds of storm and heat. Still standing, still green, reminding us of Jesus. Let us pray:
God our Father, teach us to be patient like the farmer who sows seeds to his field, not knowing at all how these germinate and grow; teach us to be faithful to You in Christ Jesus, always open to find Him and embrace Him in the ordinary things in life; teach us to have more of You, God in Jesus through prayers and Sacraments, to have more faith than gadgets, more hope than instant gratifications and more love than social media. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Friday in the Tenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 14 June 2024 1 Kings 19:9, 11-16 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 5:27-32
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo, Sagada, Mt. Province, 2014.
O God, dear Father, how I have loved so much ever since today's story of Elijah fleeing from death at the hands of Jezebel's army; so many times I have felt like Elijah, so tired, fed up fighting, hoping for death when the going gets tough and rough; and so many times too, You have never forsaken me, Father like Elijah, asking me many times that question, "Why are you here?" (1 Kings 19:9, 13).
Very often, I get confused, Father,
if I am that zealous for You
like Elijah or just me so insistent
with what I believe,
with what I know,
with what I hold so dear
in You and for You;
many times I do not know
if I am still doing your will
especially when it is so difficult,
so uncomfortable and,
yes, I have asked You many times
why not just make me
an ordinary man,
instead of being your prophet....
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo, Sagada, Mt. Province, 2014.
But your question remains, Lord, that I rarely face nor answer squarely: "Why are you here?"
You know me so well, Lord: like Simon Peter in Capernaum after your discourse on the bread of life, my favorite response to You is "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God" (John 6:68-69).
But most of all, I am here because like the psalmist, "I long to see your face, O Lord" (Psalm 27:7-8); and for me to see your face means to love more until it hurts me; to see your face, Lord, is to be still and silent amid the noise of this world for you are always there in our midst among the weak and voiceless, among those in the margins and underneath the heaps of scraps and garbage; to see your face, O Lord, is to remember always it is your work, not mine that I must accomplish.
Why am I here, Lord? Because You told me so. Thank you so much in bringing me here this far, no matter what for as long I feel getting closer with You. In that case, I shall always be here for You! Amen.
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo, Sagada, Mt. Province, 2014.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Thursday, Memorial of St. Anthony of Padua, Priest & Doctor of the Church, 13 June 2024 1 Kings 18:41-46 ><]]]]’> + <‘[[[[>< Matthew 5:20-26
Photo by author, 2023.
God our loving Father, thank you for this memorial of St. Anthony de Padua, your humble servant who is also the patron of lost items; in sending us your Son Jesus Christ, You gave us the chance to recover, to have anew, to find whatever we have lost like our dignity and honor as your children, life in You with all the grace and fulfillment, forgiveness, and peace.
In a trice, the sky grew dark with clouds and wind, and a heavy rain fell. Ahab mounted his chariot and made for Jezreel. But the hand of the Lord was on Elijah, who girded up his clothing and ran before Ahab as far as the approaches to Jezreel.
1Kings 19:45-46
How lovely is this scene, Father: of You sending rains again to Israel after punishing them with a drought that lasted three years; most especially of your prophet Elijah despite his old age and weak body being able to outrun King Ahab in your immense power and grace simply because he relied only in You; help us find our way back to You, O God, through Jesus Christ your Son; take us back to your side, to seek and follow your will by being pure and clean before You through our dealings with one another; like St. Anthony, may we immerse ourselves in your words and teachings so that we may be more loving caring and understanding, Amen.
St. Anthony of Padua, Pray for us!
The former residence of St. Anthony in Lisbon, Portugal converted into a church after his canonization as saint, a year after his death in 1231 at the age of 36. Photo courtesy of Mr. Jilson Tio of Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday in the Tenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 12 June 2024 1 Kings 18:20-39 <*{{{{>< + ><}}}}*> Matthew 5:17-19
Photo from Colombo Plan Staff College, cpstech.org, 12 June 2020.
Praise and glory to You, God our loving Father for the gift of Independence, for the gift of a country and a nation, of culture and identity until now many of us continue to debate; forgive us, Father, for being like your people during the time of Elijah when we could not make up our minds on whether to follow and obey You or follow other pagan gods that still about these days. How sad, dear Father, when many of our supposed learned men and women are ashamed of our being the remaining nation faithful to You, making divorce illegal; doubly sad, O God, when some of our own countrymen laugh and insult the Spaniards who conquered our land to bring Christianity here.
Ahab sent to all the children of Israel and had the prophets assemble on Mount Carmel. Elijah appealed to all the people and said, “How long will you straddle the issue? If the Lord is God, follow him; if Baal, follow him.” The people, however, did not answer him.
Like the psalmist today, I pray that You "keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge, show me the path to life, fullness of joys in your presence, the delights at your right hand forever" (Psalm 16:1, 11); teach me the way to true freedom and independence of lovingly serving the weakest among us by protecting life in all its stages especially its basic unit, the family.
May we take into hearts Jesus Christ's words to bring into fulfillment the words of your laws into our own laws like the 1987 Constitution that had enshrined marriage as an "inviolable social institution" in Article XV; let us stop all these fantasies of legalizing divorce, of separating from your divine order of things that only enslave us to sin and evil. Amen.
Quiet Storm by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 11 June 2024
From stillromancatholicafteralltheseyears.com, January 2022.
What is very sad in this ongoing debate against divorce in our country is how some people claiming to be graduates and professors of Catholic institutions insist on their many “intellectual reasonings” why divorce should be allowed while at the same time declaring it is wrong to profess we are against divorce simply because we are Catholics.
What a tragedy when those educated or teaching in Catholic schools and universities who are supposed to know more and better about Jesus Christ and His teachings are the ones favoring divorce. They cite so many studies and authors even theologians to support their stand in favor of divorce without ever mentioning Christ’s teachings found in the Sacred Scriptures that were explained by the Church in our Catechism as well as in so many other documents by the Popes and bishops.
We understand how journalists could err regarding names and other details that essentially do not effect the veracity of their news like the recent sakalan blues in Gagalangin, Tondo when the interview of a priest was ascribed to another; but, to be one sided in the presentation of a story is something else like Rappler’s “The Problem with I am Catholic, I say no to divorce”. There’s a reliable maxim in journalism that says “Opinions are free but facts are sacred.”
The main fact we have been holding on the sanctity and indissolubility of marriage for over 2000 years is our Lord Jesus Christ’s teaching against divorce that the pro-divorce everywhere have refused to accept.
Yes, we need to listen to different views about divorce but not to those views condemned by the Church because they are wrong.
Divorce cannot be isolated as merely a political issue to be resolved because marriage as a natural sacrament is spiritual in nature, a path to holiness.
Marriage is a gift and a call from God for men and women to live and work together in order to attain eternal life. This we achieve firstly by having a prayer life, a relationship with God expressed in our love for one another especially between husband and wife.
In arguing against divorce, we need to look for those couples who have made it through thick and thin in their marriage in order to inspire others in following the path of Holy Matrimony.
Joyce and Tony in 2019 with son Atty. JA and wife Kathleen with their two sons, and daughter Rosella.
As a contribution in our fight against divorce, I share with you my homily at the 40th wedding anniversary of my cousin Joyce Pollard to Tony Lopez in October 2019 which I titled as “Married life is a prayer”.
Oh what a joy to officiate weddings especially of relatives and friends!
Hope you find some lessons and inspirations on the beauty of marriage we have to keep.
As I prepared my homily for your anniversary, Joyce and Tony… “the moment I woke up and before your Mommy Fely put on her make-up, I said a little prayer for you.”
Of course that is not the theme song of Joyce and Tony. They haven’t met yet in 1967 when Dione Warwick recorded I Say a Little Prayer. But they were already married when it became one of the tracks in the movie “My Best Friend’s Wedding” starring Julia Roberts.
And since this is my “best cousin’s wedding anniversary” in this part of the city, I have thought of reflecting on married life as a prayer.
In our gospel we have heard Jesus Christ narrating the parable of the unjust judge and persistent widow to underscore “the necessity to pray always without becoming weary” (Lk. 18:1).
Prayer is an expression of faith.
When there is faith, there is also love.
And when there is prayer, faith, and love, what we have is a relationship, a community of believers who love each other.
People who love and believe with each other always talk and communicate. They make time to be with one another. And most often, that is what really matters with people who love and believe – simply to be together.
Even in silence.
Like prayer.
Prayer is more than asking things from God but most of all, prayer is a relationship with God expressed with others. That is the beauty of the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony: husband and wife are bound together in marriage to become signs of the saving presence of Jesus Christ.
Marriage as a sacrament means it is a prayer as well, a relationship of a man and woman with God as its source and foundation.
I am sure, Joyce and Tony along with all the other married couples here today will agree that married life requires a lot of prayers. In fact, married life is a prayer, a very difficult one that is much needed.
Like in that movie My Best Friend’s Wedding, there are real forces of evil that are trying to destroy couples. So many couples have already fallen, going their separate lives after several years of being together while on the other hand, more and more couples are refusing to get married at all due to this reality of breakups and separations.
And that is why we are celebrating today Joyce and Tony’s 40th wedding anniversary! We are praying with them in expressing our faith and love for them in Christ Jesus. Prayers have kept them together, transforming them into better persons.
At the end of the parable of the persistent widow and unjust judge, Jesus posed a very crucial question for us, especially to every married couple here today: When the Son of Man comes again at the end of time, will he find faith on earth? (Lk.18:8)
And what shall be our response?
“Yes, Lord, you shall find faith when you come again in Joyce and Tony!”
Like Moses in the first reading, they both prayed hard with arms outstretched on many occasions as they battled life’s many challenges and struggles.
“Yes, Lord, you shall find faith when you come again in Joyce and Tony” because they have both proclaimed your word with persistence, whether it is convenient or inconvenient like St. Paul in his second letter to Timothy. They have weathered so many storms in the past 40 years and your words, O Lord, have kept them together, sharing these with their children and with everyone in their life of fidelity and love.
“Yes, Lord, you shall find faith when you come again in Joyce and Tony” now before your altar to renew their vows to love and cherish each other for the rest of their lives!
“Yes, Lord, you shall find faith when you come again” among the many couples gathered here who have remained faithful to each other despite their many sins and failures, weaknesses and shortcomings.
Joyce and Tony, you are not only a prayer of faith but also a homily of the Holy Matrimony, showing us the light and power of Jesus Christ to transform people in prayer and bring them to fulfillment.
Prayer does not change things like typhoons and earthquakes. We cannot ask God in prayer to spare us from getting sick or be exempted from life’s many trials and sufferings. Prayer cannot stop those from happening.
What prayer does is change us, change our attitude so we may hurdle life’s many blows and obstacles. Especially with couples who always find God in their lives, in good times and in bad.
Prayers transform us into better persons as children of God, especially couples who eventually look like brothers and sisters after living together in faith, hope and love.
Tony and Joyce, I am sure everyone in our family and among your friends here can attest to the many good things that have transformed you in the past 40 years.
You have changed to become the best for each other.
In the bible, the number 40 means perfect.
May God continue to perfect you, Tony and Joyce.
Keep us too in your prayers as we pray for you. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tuesday, Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle, 11 June 2024 Acts 11:21-26, 13:1-3 ><]]]]'> + <'[[[[>< Matthew 10:7-13
Photo by author, Mt. St. Paul, La Trinidad, Benguet, 2016.
Praise and glory to You, God our loving Father for this memorial of St. Barnabas, one of the first to embrace Christianity after the Resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ.
A Levite Jew born in Cyprus, his original name was Joseph but upon joining the Apostles in Jerusalem, he was nicknamed Barnabas which means "son of encouragement" or "son of consolation" whom St. Luke described as "a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith" (Acts 11:24).
Fill us, dear Jesus with the same goodness and faith of St. Barnabas, truly children of encouragement and consolation, believing in our brothers and sisters especially those have withdrawn from the ministry and apostolate for various reasons including shame and embarrassment for past mistakes and sins like St. Paul.
Then he (Barnabas) went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a large number of people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians.
Fill us with your gift of peace, Lord Jesus, to imitate St. Barnabas who vouched for St. Paul's sincerity of conversion as well as in encouraging and consoling the early Christians who were persecuted for their faith in You.
Help us imitate St. Barnabas in his beautiful disposition of focusing more on You, Jesus than in the problems and personalities we encounter in fulfilling your mission; most of all, grant us the humility of St. Barnabas to reconcile later with St. Paul after a serious disagreement that led to their parting of ways as companions in their mission.
Make us realize, Jesus, that saints like St. Barnabas do not fall from Heaven but are people like us who have many and complicated problems in life; let us arise from our sins and mistakes like St. Barnabas who showed in his life that holiness is not being sinless but being humble to admit one's sins and faults, going through conversion daily with a willingness to forgive others to be reconciled anew in You, Jesus. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Monday in Tenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 10 June 2024 1 Kings 17:1-6 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 5:1-12
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
Your words today, O Lord, seem to be so apart, unconnected, even disconsonant to some respect: in the first reading, You declared a drought as punishment against Israel who turned their backs from You, worshipping Baal; in the gospel, Jesus preached His Sermon on the mount, declaring as "blessed" are those who are poor, the meek, the hungry and thirsty, the persecuted and insulted - conditions and situations directly contrary to the ways of the world, so uncomfortable and difficult.
Every time we are facing trials and difficulties in life, we consider it as a drought, a time when You, O God, seem to be so far from us when in fact, it is us who have gone astray and away from You!
Let us see, dear Jesus, your blessings in every drought, in every hardship, in every poverty, and persecutions we go through; let us realize the blessedness of these moments of drought and trials and difficulties when we can examine what's in our hearts, who's in our hearts.
Many times we unconsciously drift apart from You, O Lord, when we are carried away by our modern baals and gods that separate us from You and one another; help us find our way back to You, rejoicing always in times of drought to seek You and follow You. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B, 09 June 2024 Genesis 3:9-15 ><}}}}*> 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1 ><}}}}*> Mark 3:20-35
Photo by author, from the refectory of Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 18 March 2024.
In this age of so much emphasis on appearances, social media never run out of lists of what’s in, what’s out not only in fashion and lifestyles but practically in everything we do. Everybody wants to be “in” and nobody wants to be left out of the latest trends.
Yet, the irony is, we do not realize that the more we try to be “in”, the more we are actually “out” as in passe and baduy or jologs; in our efforts to be “in” and always on top of the latest in everything, the more we are actually lost, the more we become ordinary. The more we try to be “in”, the more we become “out” like in the gospel this Sunday.
Jesus came home with his disciples. Again the crowd gathered, making it impossible for them even to eat. When his relatives heard of this they set out to seize him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.” the scribes who had come from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “By the prince of demons he drives out demons.” A crowd seated around him told him, “Your mother and your brothers and your sisters are outside asking for you.” But he said to them in reply, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
Mark wrote the first gospel account of Jesus Christ that is very short and straight to the point, making it so engaging with its quick pace that brings us his readers right inside the scene he describes like our gospel this Sunday.
Jesus in Mark’s gospel is portrayed as a person so filled with mystery that the only way to know Him is to enter into a personal relationship with Him. It is not enough to be physically close with Jesus. For Mark, there is an inner dynamics of faith involved in knowing Jesus as we have seen in the last three Sundays before Lent interrupted our Ordinary Time in February this year when people began following Him as He spoke with authority that He could drive away demons (Mk.1:21), heal the sick like Peter’s mother-in-law (Mk.1:29) and cleanse lepers (Mk.1:40).
Let us come with Mark inside that house with Jesus to see if those inside with Him were really “in” or “out”.
Photo by author, sculpture of Jesus wandering Galilee, sleeping on a bench in Capernaum; taken in May 2019 at the entrance to Capernaum.
In that house perhaps owned by one of the Lord’s disciples, we find through Mark that not everybody inside was “in” with Jesus. Many did not actually believe Him like His relatives who have come to get Him out, claiming “He is out of his mind”. Likewise, there were inside His enemies from the start like the scribes who accused Him of being possessed by demons.
Very clear that not everybody inside the house believed Jesus nor were one with Him. That is why Jesus narrated the parable of a kingdom and a house divided against itself, asking those present, “How can Satan drive out Satan?”
Mark reminds us here that physical presence is not enough with Jesus as well as with everyone. It is always easier to go inside without really coming inside. As we have reflected after my mother’s death, going home is going to one’s place but coming home is being one with persons like our loved ones (https://lordmychef.com/2024/05/10/coming-home-going-home/).
That’s when Mark dropped his kicker in the story towards end when Jesus declared about the sin against the Holy Spirit:
“Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies that people utter will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.” For they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
Mark 3:28-30
Image from shutterstock.com.
Notice how Mark explained why Jesus declared sin against the Holy Spirit cannot be forgiven: because they had said “He has an unclean spirit.” What’s the big deal? It is so big!
We are able to learn and follow the path of right living in Christ through the Holy Spirit who was sent by Jesus to explain to us everything He had taught us while still here. Therefore, to sin against the Holy Spirit is to reject God Himself, to reject Jesus and His teachings!
How can we be forgiven if we do not believe God forgives sins, that Jesus has redeemed us already? How could one be healed of one’s sickness if the person does not believe in doctors or nurses?
That was precisely the sin of the Lord’s relatives and the scribes who were there inside with Him in the house: instead of seeing the power of God in Jesus Christ, His love and mercy and healing, they saw the devil. If they have opened themselves to the guidance and light of the Holy Spirit, they would have recognized Jesus indeed is the Christ just like the people of Nain after Jesus brought back to life the widow’s only son, exclaiming, “The Lord has visited his people” (Lk.7:16).
Photo by author, 2010.
But wait… there is still the punch line of Mark in today’s gospel when those around Jesus told Him, “Your mother and your brothers and your sisters are outside asking for you.”
That’s the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of the Lord whose Memorial of the Immaculate Heart we celebrated yesterday after the Sacred Heart Solemnity.
Now look at that great irony in our gospel today. There was the Blessed Mother Mary outside with the Lord’s cousins wanting to see Him when in fact, she was the one Jesus was referring to when He replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
So, who’s really inside and outside of Jesus?
Of course, it is so easy to answer that but what about us? Where are we in this gospel scene? Inside but one of the relatives and scribes or, one of the disciples? Or, outside like the Blessed Mother who has always been inside Jesus her Son?
It is not enough to be inside the church and the Catholic Church or simply inside your house or wherever there is a gathering of people. Or, in marriage. We have to be one in Christ with the persons around us.
In the first reading we have heard how our first parents, Adam and Eve were already inside Paradise, with God face to face but still, not really inside Him for inside themselves were pride and desires to become like God. Deep inside them they wanted to be outside of God without realizing its dire results that have been passed on to us in this generation too, keeping us away and apart from each other. Worst, we have refused to follow the Holy Spirit’s promptings that until now, peace and justice have both remained elusive to us because we could not trust Jesus, always finding easier for many to just quit or leave marriages and family by having a divorce.
Jesus came to change us along with our many perceptions and beliefs of who God is. Many times, we find the ways of Jesus so different, even far out from our own ideas and wishes and desires for ourselves and for others.
Photo by author, 13 September 2023.
Last Sunday, we reflected how Jesus saved the world by suffering and dying on the Cross, not by programs and activities. Today, Mark invites us to come inside the crowded house to join the true family of Jesus, to be His mother and brother and sister by doing the will of His Father.
In this age marked by so many divisions among us due to our own making like divorce and wars, our readings remind us how it had always been the trend that is why the Son of God, Jesus Christ became human to fulfill the Father’s promise of salvation and wholeness right after Adam and Eve sinned against Him.
Everything can be overcome in Christ Jesus who is our only fulfillment and salvation in life. St. Paul instructs us in the second reading to always search Jesus in every suffering we are going through especially in our family or marriages so that we are not “discouraged because although our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day”(2Cor.4:16).
Let us pray:
Dearest Jesus: help me find my way home back to You into the Father's house; forgive for always running away from You, always trying to get inside the world only to find myself more lost and outside; home is where the heart is, Jesus, as they say; and it is so true with You especially in this time when "place" is no longer physical location but wherever You are proclaimed and made known. Let me believe in every possibilities in You, Lord Jesus. Amen.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Friday, Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus-B, 07 June 2024 Hosea 11:1, 3-4, 8-9 ><}}}*> Ephesians 3:8-12, 14-19 ><}}}*> John 19:31-37
Being tender and caring are essentially your works, O God, made known to us by your Son Jesus Christ in His Most Sacred Heart where there is enough room for each one of us wounded and hurting to find healing; bitter and disgusted to have rest and solace; lost to find way back home.
Thus says the Lord: When Israel was a child I loved him, out of Egypt I called my son. Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk, who took them in my arms; I drew them with human cords, with bands of love; I fostered them like one who raises an infant to his cheeks; Yet. though I stooped to feed my child, they did not know that I was their healer.
Hosea 11:1, 3-4
I must admit, O God, that I have not yet really known You that until now, I lack your tenderness and care for others; to have tenderness like You, Lord, is first of all for me to be intimate with You, my Father, my Life, my Mission; You have nurtured me as your son but I never recognized You fully that is why many times I followed my doubts and negative thoughts than You. So many times I pray yet still so far from You, O God!
Lord Jesus Christ, "dwell in my heart through faith so that I may be rooted and grounded in love" (Ephesians 3:17) because when my love with God is superficial, all my relationships are also skin-deep that make me forget my love experiences, giving more emphasis on others' shortcomings, expectations, and returns; tenderness is being like You, O God, of having a big heart able to accommodate those suffering because You know and realize the gravity of what others are going through; more than a feeling, tenderness is love and mercy in action because it is to feel what others are going through.
Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart like Thine, close to the Father, close to His children. Amen.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
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